State visit from Turkey begins

The cortège arrives at the Royal Palace of Stockholm via Norrbro. Photo: Henrik Montgomery/Scanpix

On Monday 11 May, Turkey's state visit to Sweden began.

The state visit began at the Royal Mews, where The King and Queen welcomed President Abdullah Gül and Mrs Gül. The King and Queen and the Presidential couple then travelled by cortège, accompanied by escort troops and standard bearers from the Royal Life Guards, to the Royal Palace of Stockholm. At the Royal Palace, The King and the President inspected the Guard of Honour. The Presidential couple then greeted representatives from the Riksdag and the Swedish Government in the Hall of State. Gifts were exchanged in the Pillared Hall in the Bernadotte Apartments, and The Crown Princess Couple, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Madeleine also attended. The King and Queen then hosted lunch for the Presidential couple at the Royal Palace of Stockholm. The afternoon began with the President and the Turkish delegation visiting the Riksdag, where they were received by Speaker Per Westerberg. After the meeting with the Speaker, The King and the President attended a business seminar at the Grand Hôtel, hosted by Ulf Berg, CEO of Business Sweden. During the afternoon, The Queen and Mrs Gül visited Silviahemmet. The visit was hosted by Operational Manager Wilhelmina Hoffman. They were accompanied on the visit by Minister for Children and the Elderly Maria Larsson. The Queen, Mrs Gül and Minister Larsson then visited Rinkeby Academy.